The Things We Could've Had
by linzackles
Summary: ... if not for the spinoff. "Friends, then?" - He never did get his answer and when she returns later that evening, Klaus and Caroline find themselves dealing with the consequences of a day filled with sexual tension and that unanswered promise of something new.


This takes place at the end of 4x18 and goes AU from there. Klaus never slept with Hayley in 4x16 (because logic) and I'm assuming Elijah and Rebekah had a long drive back home.

Enjoy :)

* * *

Klaus was busy kissing his way down some blonde's chest when Caroline walked into the Mikaelson mansion for the second time that day.

Catching sight of the two on the sofa, Caroline's eyes widened before she quickly turned around.

"Oh, crap, sorry!"

Turning to peek whether Klaus had even noticed her, she saw him withdraw himself from the woman who looked really confused as to who Caroline even was.

Embarrassed, Caroline began stuttering as she edged her way back to the door she'd entered through.

"Um, I'm just gonna… g-go," she smiled awkwardly before spinning all the way around.

"Caroline, wait," Klaus called out.

Hesitantly she turned back to see Klaus lean in to the strawberry-blonde, his pupils dilating.

"Leave."

Immediately she stood up, grabbed her top, and made her way past Caroline, not even bothering to make eye contact with the other blonde.

Klaus stood but didn't make his way over to her as that enchanted smile slipped onto his face.

"What can I do for you, Caroline? I thought you had a prom to plan."

Caroline laughed at herself, remembering how she'd told him earlier not to bother her again.

"Well I finished quadruple-checking everything that needed double-checking so figured I'd come over just to make sure Silas didn't get to you again," she explained.

Seemingly pleased by her explanation, Klaus spread his hands.

"As you can see, I'm quite unharmed."

"Yeahhh I see so," Caroline said, pointedly staring at the sofa he'd just been on with the blonde. "Who was that?" she asked, focusing on keeping her tone even.

Klaus shrugged. "Didn't catch her name."

She eyed him for a second then shrugged too. "Ok, well, since you're ok and everything I'm just gonna go."

He sucked in a tiny breath as she turned to leave, something she wouldn't have noticed without her vampire hearing, but it was small and slightly anxious.

"Could I offer you a drink?"

She bit on her lip, holding back a smile, before spinning around again. She planned on plenty of beauty sleep and did _not _need to show up at prom hung-over, but she supposed one drink wouldn't hurt.

"One," she accepted.

Looking elated, Klaus gestured for her to take a seat before heading over to the drinks table. She sat herself down on the sofa he'd just vacated, making sure to take Klaus' spot instead of the unnamed blondes'.

"So what, you just bring random girls home all the time without even getting their names?" she made small talk.

Or at least she convinced herself it was small talk, making up for how awkward that moment had been. But in the back of her mind Caroline knew that she was trying to work through things – she'd never taken Klaus for the kind of guy who had serial one night stands. Damon, yes, but she'd always expected more from Klaus for some reason.

And, _ok_,maybe deep deep down there was some jealousy. _Some. _

Klaus seemed amused by her interest as he poured their drinks.

"Ordinarily, no. However, considering Elijah is on his way home with the cure, I felt I had cause for celebration."

He was intensely aware of the amount of omission he was doing with his answer but didn't allow it to show as he turned back to the gorgeous blonde, bearing two tumblers.

Caroline's back straightened. "Elijah has the cure?"

"Easy, love," he soothed, knowing she might be preparing to run off to her friends. "Until he returns with it there's nothing any of us can do."

Realising the truth of his words, Caroline visibly slumped again and Klaus smirked.

She thanked him as she accepted the drink.

"So your version of celebration is compelling innocent people back to your place?" Caroline accused with a raised brow.

She wasn't sure what she was doing – she hadn't come here to fight. But she always found herself jumping on the defensive when she felt herself getting too close to Klaus and right now definitely counted – physically and metaphorically.

Though the sofa was huge, he'd settled himself near the centre, close enough to her so that Caroline was getting a very clear whiff of his amazing, clean masculine scent. Throughout the day his shirtless state had at least been offput by the smell of blood in the air and even a faint tinge of sweat, but now he was back to his usual state of perfection and she annoyingly found herself thinking back to the tempting planes of his body.

Klaus frowned. "I assure you, she was here very much of her own accord. Though I wonder why you would think otherwise?"

_Because you're the Big Bad and the more bad things you do the easier it is to keep you in that box and the easier it is for me not to feel like – _

When she didn't reply, Klaus smiled cordially. "Never mind. Let's discuss other matters, shall we?"

He looked up at her from beneath his lashes as he sipped his drink and Caroline felt a shiver run down her back.

"Um… ok. What should we talk about?"

He looked at her in amusement, like she should've known the answer to this one by now.

"You."

Caught off-guard by his familiar reply, she laughed. And yes, she may have been distracted but no, she didn't fail to notice the way he carefully watched her every action; the curve of her neck as she threw her head back.

"Tell me about prom," he prompted.

She looked at him in surprise, her jaw slack. "_You_ want to know about prom?"

He seemed confused. "It's important to you, isn't it?"

She shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah."

"Then I want to know," he replied matter-of-factly.

When she hesitated, Klaus' gaze dropped to the untouched drink she was still holding.

"Would you like me to get you something else?"

She glanced down too and realised with embarrassment that she hadn't taken a single sip yet. Shaking her head vehemently as she blushed, Caroline downed the entire contents of her glass. Granted, it hadn't been all that much, but Caroline sputtered as the liquid burned down her throat at an intensity not even she had been expecting.

Coughing as Klaus looked on worriedly, Caroline glared. "What the hell, Klaus, what _was_ that?" she exclaimed.

Klaus couldn't help laughing at her and as her glare intensified, he moved closer and laid a hand on her arm.

"Are you alright?"

Feeling the burn subside and seeing how amused Klaus still looked, Caroline focused her full attention on glaring at him.

"_Fine_. And you won't be able to say the same if you don't stop laughing," she threatened.

Making a concentrated effort to remove the mirth from his face, Klaus regarded Caroline.

"You're not supposed to have it all in one go," he pointed out.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Wow, how helpful of you to tell me that _now_." Shuddering, she placed her glass down on a side table. "God, are you trying to get me drunk or something?" she muttered, mostly to herself.

Klaus chuckled. "And what would that accomplish, hmm?"

When she didn't say anything, Klaus decided to taunt her a little more.

"Besides, I could hardly have predicted how bad you are at handling your alcohol, love."

Caroline's jaw dropped at his insult which was _so_ completely unfair. As Klaus began laughing at her again, she began to feel that hostility that usually preceded something crazy take over.

Worse, she felt like she had to prove something to him. So, she did the only thing she could think of: Caroline leaned forward and, mentally preparing herself for the pain this time, she relieved Klaus of his drink right before pouring it down her own throat.

That stopped him right in his tracks and Caroline regarded him with a triumphant smirk.

Which, admittedly, was a little hard to do because her lips were completely numb and her throat definitely wanted to give her the middle finger, but she was Caroline Forbes and she was so not going to miss the chance to stick it to the great Klaus Mikaelson.

His hand was still on her, she realised with a jolt. It was beginning to burn a hole into her cardigan and she just really needed him not to move it ever.

Oh god, how much had those two drinks affected her already?

"Nothing good can come of that," Klaus said with a concerned brow.

Caroline kept her composure for a moment before her face fell in on itself as she laughed.

"Oh my god, you're right, it hurts so much!"

Soon they were both caught in a fit of laughter and maybe she unconsciously closed the distance between them in that time?

_Unconsciously – _right.

Their laughter wound down and Caroline pouted earnestly.

"I can't feel my lips."

Klaus chuckled again before his gaze flicked down.

He felt overwhelmed with the desire to taste her, this woman whose actions he could never predict; who could make him laugh – he needed to taste her.

Still, he moved forward slowly, averse to doing anything that would be against her will.

"Shall we see if we can resolve that?" he asked, his voice at almost a whisper.

Caroline swallowed audibly and she didn't pull away, didn't move at all, as he moved closer.

His eyes kept alternating between hers and her lips. He licked his lips when he gazed at the plump pinkness of hers one last time, before kissing her.

She gasped, half because it felt freaking amazing and half because she hadn't expected it to be so gentle. He took his job of tentatively returning feeling to her lips seriously, placing soft quick kisses on her bottom lip, then moved to her upper.

"How does that feel?" he asked, sneakily, against her lips.

"Um, slightly better," she lied.

On impact her lips had begun to feel _everything_, like they'd known that kissing Klaus Mikaelson was simply not something you didn't record every single sensation of, in order to replay later.

"Hmmm," he hummed, continuing his ministrations.

She wanted to kiss him back, just push against him and dig her hands in his hair and do everything she'd been thinking of since getting a front row ticket to his awesome body, but she held herself back.

This was _Klaus. _He wanted her, not the other way around.

"How about now?" he asked, smirking.

She felt like cursing, knowing that she couldn't believably keep saying no but also wanting his lips to stay, like, _exactly _where they were.

"Um yeah, that's way better," she admitted reluctantly.

She pulled away and Klaus sucked in a breath when he saw the way she was looking at him from beneath her lashes. For once, it was the exact mirror of the lust he was feeling for her.

But there was something else beneath that hooded gaze – she wanted him but she didn't want to instigate it. She was, in fact, still trying to convince herself she didn't want it.

He considered the dilemma, staying close enough for her cool alcohol-laced breath to waft over him. She was still denying herself but that no longer went hand in hand with rejection. He wanted to hear her say that she desired him just as much as he desired her, but he wasn't sure he could bring her to that realisation without applying a modicum of… pressure.

Sliding his hand up from her arm, Klaus settled his fingers on her face lightly, caressing her cheek. Her eyes fluttered closed and he felt strangely proud of the achievement.

He moved the hand back into her hair before pushing forward again, this time to speak into her ear.

"From the conversation you and Tyler had before he left, am I to infer that you two broke up?"

"Yes," she breathed.

Knowingly he brushed his stubble along her face, relishing her sigh, and grazed his lips against her ear lobe.

"And has that changed?"

"No," she said, her voice even lower.

"Then once again you aren't spoken for?' he confirmed.

With Caroline a free woman he couldn't be sure that some other ruffian in town hadn't managed to win her affections.

"Yes," she repeated, practically a whimper.

He was relieved to know that she was free to make her own choice here, based solely on those wants she had yet to admit. He only had to ease her into it.

He pulled back, slowly, searing his lips across her cheek as he went. Her skin was so soft, as was her light scent and it all made him heady. He still couldn't believe she wasn't retreating. He still half-expected it and with every inch his lips moved across, he revelled in the fact that she was allowing him this.

Caroline had little choice in the matter. Her body was frozen in pure pleasure; ice everywhere besides the burning trail his lips were leaving. And, god, she couldn't _wait _for him to finally get to her lips.

She wasn't proud of the noise she made when he eventually did, but if she was annoyed by the smug smirk his lips twisted into beneath hers, then she got her revenge by bringing her leg up to wrap her thigh around his waist, using it to pull him in closer forcefully.

She was proud to note that his noise of pleased surprise was way more embarrassing than her own had been.

He didn't bother to slow down the momentum of his body though, and crashed into her, sending her sprawling backwards. His lips never lefts hers, his hands running everywhere while he desperately sucked at her lips. Caroline whimpered under his attention but felt the need to make one thing clear.

Pushing a hand to his chest, she opened her eyes. He looked bewildered; disappointed by her rejection, but she eyed him strictly.

"I'm not some replacement for your celebration blonde."

She was proud for the articulation she'd managed when her head was pretty much just a mess of heated desire and need for more and more of Klaus.

His facial expression changed to one of amused confusion.

"That implies some level of equality, Caroline. You're well aware that there is no woman who could possibly measure up to you."

She exhaled heavily before pulling him down by his necklaces, forcing his mouth to crash back into hers. Klaus seemed to enjoy the rough play; he pulled himself to his knees and wrapped both her thighs around him securely, earning a groan from the blonde.

He pulled away for a second.

"Besides, her purpose wasn't primarily that of celebration," he finally admitted.

She wanted to ask him to elaborate but immediately his burning mouth was pressed to hers again and she got lost in the feeling.

When he pulled back again to move his lips down her neck, Caroline gasped out her question.

"What was it then?"

"An attempt at amnesia," he replied.

He felt his way over her blue cardigan then ripped it off violently; he'd been wanting to do that all day.

"I sought to forget how much I wanted you today," he continued, rubbing his hands over the newly risen gooseflesh on her arms. "How your hands on me as you helped me made me want to press myself to you and kiss you senseless."

Caroline gasped as he did just that, and she dragged her nails down his back, thinking over his words. She was glad she hadn't been the only who'd been faced with some serious temptation today. But if he was going to be confessing then she supposed she should too.

"I didn't come here just to check if you were ok," she admitted breathily once he'd gone back to her neck.

This came as a surprise and he paused to look at her curiously.

She blushed. "I had nothing else to do… and I found myself wanting to see you."

There it was again, that enchanted smile, like nothing she ever did could do anything but please him. It was the damnedest and most amazing thing.

She rolled her eyes. "Don't look at me like that."

She never wanted him to stop.

He feigned ignorance; knowing very well the stars that formed in his eyes when he looked at the only thing on this planet that could still dazzle him.

"Like what?"

Again she rolled her eyes and he chuckled before inching his way underneath her top.

Caroline sucked in a breath as she felt the rough pads of Klaus' fingers dance over her stomach. It was only a touch of curiosity, like he was exploring her, but she could barely handle the resulting heat.

"So," he began with a smirk. "Friends, then?"

Caroline giggled; god, he was relentless.

But he had a point, this definitely couldn't happen without her acknowledging at least _that_.

"Friends," she nodded firmly.

He was sneaky – his eyes held hers so well that she was taken completely off-guard when he tore her top right down the middle with an audible rip.

His eyes feasted on the smooth creamy skin of her taut stomach; the perfection he knew the turquoise lace cups to be hiding.

Unexpectedly he crashed his lips back to hers. She panted into the kiss, tightening her thighs around his waist.

She felt desperate to see his body again and she hesitated for a second before reaching behind him to pull off his grey Henley. Klaus moved back to allow her, his eyes full of unveiled lust for her as she flung his top away. Then he dropped his head to her chest, laying scorching kisses right down to the crest of her bra.

Arching up in pleasure, Caroline frowned in confusion when he stopped.

"One last thing to clear up, love," he announced.

Seriously? What the hell could it be?

Running her hands up and down his front, relishing the fact that she could actually touch his bare body now, she nodded reluctantly.

"What?"

Like, what more did he need from her? A written letter of consent; permission from her mother, _what_?

"Tell me you want this," he said against her skin.

Her eyes widened. "What?"

"It's exceedingly simple, Caroline. Tell me that this is what you want," he repeated.

"Would I be underneath you right now if it wasn't what I wanted, Klaus?" she pointed out edgily.

He was being difficult and all she wanted – really really _needed_ – right now was something that had very little to do with talking.

"I want you to say it," he emphasised, his stubble insistent between her breasts.

"I – I…"

"C'mon, love, it's not that difficult. Just say the words."

Her eyes fluttered closed as he licked his way from her sternum up to her neck. He marked his journey with a nip at her collarbone before licking his way back down.

She was arching into his mouth, holding back whimpers with her eyes tightly shut to relieve some of the pressure, but she still couldn't bring herself to say it.

Her mother always said her stubborn ways would get her into trouble. Well, Klaus was pretty much the definition of that.

Noting her relative silence, Klaus growled. After a quick moment of consideration he roughly brought his knee forward, up between her thighs.

Caroline's head lifted from the sofa as her eyes popped open in utter shock and pleasure. And maybe she screeched a bit too. Maybe.

"Say it," he coaxed.

Weaving her hands through his hair, Caroline breathed steadily through her nose.

The thing was, if she said it then this – whatever _this _was – hurtled straight from 'I came here and we accidentally ended up having slightly drunk sex' to 'I came here and I wanted you just as much as you wanted me and then I begged you for it'.

And there would come a time when that distinction would matter. Right?

Only Klaus was hellbent on torturing her until she gave in and her only options were either leaving or torturing him just as wildly until he forgot his mission. When it came down to it, only the latter was a real option and she was just considering ways to do so when all plans, all _thought_, flew right out the window.

He started moving his knee urgently up against her, his ministrations pure torture through the rough fabric of her jeans. Her head flew back as she gasped for oxygen, her hands tugging violently at his curls.

And, god, the only reason the words didn't gurgle pathetically in her throat was because she desperately needed him to hear them.

"Ok yes! Klaus, _yes_! I want you, I want this –_ I want you_. Now give it to me Klaus Mikaelson or I swear to god I'll – "

He never did get to hear the end of that threat.

* * *

Oh, the things we could've had.

Haha. Anyway, for once I actually have an idea about how to continue this so I could make it into a two-shot if I were so persuaded ;) Let me know what you thought!


End file.
